[neilep (OP)]

Dearest lovely cuddly huggable clever peeps,

Sometimes I've seen a ring around the moon !...now I don't think for a minute that an actual gaseous ring has formed around the moon but I presume it's an atmospheric thing happening.....can you please elaborate why sometimes a ring appears around the moon ?

If I'm happy with your answers I MAY post a picture of me Mooning !!

<font color="blue">Men are the same as women.... just inside out !! </font id="blue">

[Simmer]

If it looked like this;

Then this site http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/question.php?number=79 explains it as refraction caused by ice crystals in the upper atmosphere, althouth it doesn't go into any detail it links to another site with a slightly useful diagram and some more pics.  It also talks about similar rings around the sun and bright colourful patches in both types of ring (called moondogs and sundogs!), well I found it interesting anyway.

I hope that is the information you were after, it was certainly new stuff to me, thanks for raising the subject.

Please don't bother to moon your thanks - please! []

[neilep (OP)]

That's it !!..that's the one !!..ok...I won't moon....but THANKS .....what a super dooper piccy...cheers.

Men are the same as women.... just inside out !!

[gsmollin]

When the ring is around the sun, it is called a glory. The rings can form rainbows that are completely circular. There can be a second order ring. I have seen that from an airplane; two beautiful completely circular rainbows around the sun. Too bad I had no camera.

"F = ma, E = mc^2, and you can't push a string."

[cruzin4us]

All I know is it rains when there is ring around the moon.  The Donner Party saw one the night before they were snowed in.  Why does it do that before it rains/snows?

[Simmer]

Maybe the ice crystals only form when there is a lot of moisture in the air?

[Ray hinton]

THOSE RINGS ARE A RESULT OF LIGHT REFLECTING OFF COLOURED ICE CRYSTALS IN SPACE, LEFT THERE WHEN THE SHUTTLE ASTONAUTS FLUSH THE LOO, THE COLOUR BEING THE RESULT OF THE PATICULAR CHEMICAL THEY USED TO CLEAN IT WITH.
I HOPE THAT HAS CLARIFIED EVERYTHING FOR YOU    

RE-HAB IS FOR QUITTERS.

[Monox D. I-Fly]

It also talks about similar rings around the sun and bright colourful patches in both types of ring (called moondogs and sundogs!), well I found it interesting anyway.

Why are the rings being referred as dogs?

[Colin2B]

It also talks about similar rings around the sun and bright colourful patches in both types of ring (called moondogs and sundogs!), well I found it interesting anyway.

Why are the rings being referred as dogs?

the rings aren’t, it just refers to the bright patches -“bright colourful patches in both types of ring (called moondogs and sundogs!)”. The bit in parentheses refers to the patches not the rings, but didn’t make it clear.
Probably called that because they follow (as in dog) the sun or act as companions. The etymology is uncertain.